A fairytale victory for Johannesburg A as they register a fourth historic title

Dr. Elsje Jordaan is in disbelief that her side managed to succesfully the Spar National Senior Netball Championships. Johannesburg A beat Cape Town A 52-51 in a nail biting final of the competition held at the Hoërskool Dr. E.G. Jansen in Boksburg. This marked a historical fourth straight title win in the Championships.

The two sides had already met in the opening match of the competition earlier in the week and Cape Town got the better of the Gauteng side and handed them their only loss of the tournament.

Jordaan says she is overwhelmed by the performance her side put in to secure the victory.

“I can’t put it into words. There was so much pressure coming into this week and the way the group came together with the young ones to get them over the line. I actually can’t believe it, this is like a fairytale. All credit to the group and the technical staff, they were just amazing. They were our first game on Monday and we lost by three but I also know they got better throughout the week. For us the big challenge was how to shut down Nichole Taljaard (Breedt), I thought she was a game maker for them. I also knew that I have two 19 year olds that have to play against this player that has this vast experience. That was big challenge,” says Jordaan.

The Gauteng Golden Fireballs coach is grateful that the weather behaved throughout the tournament and allowed for the matches to go ahead without the torrential rains interrupting the matches. She however does admit that the unpredictable weather made it a bit difficult to prepare.

“This has been a tough week, from very cold to wet to really hot. It has been really tough but it is the same for all the teams. It’s about how much you can absorb mentally, I thought we absorbed quite a lot. We didn’t have a great start but as the week progressed, it got better and the momentum shifted. In the semifinal, I wasn’t happy about how we played and I just knew that if we get through we are going to be great today. I think we played the final really intelligently and executed the plans really well,” she says.

Jordaan’s side went into the tournament without five of their starting seven players, owing to injuries while Tarle Mathe, Owethu Ngubane and Cornelia Mupeda are away on national duty for the Proteas and Namibia respectively. Jordaan says the youngsters managed to hold their own in the competition.

“You can play and be good enough on court but it is also the emotional intelligence off court on how to handle yourself. Pressure like this really drains them because they are young mentally they are not there yet but they showed so much authority,” she says.

The Karla Pretorius led Mangaung, took home the bronze medal in the Senior A division. The narrowly defeated Dr. Kenneth Kaunda 54-53 in the third place match.

Cape Town coach, Freda Kemp says although she is sad about missing out on the gold medal on the last second of the match, she is delighted about the improvement in the standings this year.

“I am so proud of these girls. Coming from fifth position last year to coming to lose the final with one point, we have gained something bigger than the gold medal. The culture and the core values that these girls have created is a platform for greatness to come in the future. We are definitely going for gold, we have almost tasted it. We would like a gold next year,” says Kemp.

The Western Cape Southern Stings mentor says with the right structures, the province will be able to produce some of the best talent in the country.

“The Western Cape has so much talent, we just need to put the right structures and systems in place to develop that talent. Our youngsters are also coming up right, there is a 17 year old in the Under-20 squad. There is so much hope and excitement for the future in Cape Town Netball,” she says.

Meanwhile Johannesburg Under-21 A coach, Bongiwe Msomi is thrilled that her players managed to keep their 100 per cent winning streak. Msomi’s side defeated North West’s Dr. Kenneth Kaunda 44-33 in the Under-21 division of the competition. Tshwane walked away with the bronze medal in the junior division.

“I am really excited. When we came here we really wished to defend the title. We put in a lot of work, we put the girls under so much pressure. I am so pleased for them because the more we put them under pressure and they see the results they see the work they have put in. They have done such an incredible job from Monday and today. Some bodies were tired but to be able to manage the bodies as well as we could was fantastic. I was pleased for their talent. I guess from here, their journey is going to be fantastic. They are such great talent for us,” says Msomi.

RESULTS

Senior A section

Final: Johannesburg 52 – 51 Cape Town

3rd/4th place playoff: Mangaung 54 – 53 Dr Kenneth Kaunda

SENIOR A INDIVIDUAL AWARDS:

Best shooter: Sian Moore (Cape Town)

Best midcourt player: Sanelisiwe Ntomi (Johannesburg)

Best defender: Thulisile Maduna (eThekwini)

Player of the Tournament: Amber Coraesen (Cape Town)

UNDER-21 INDIVIDUAL AWARDS:

Best shooter: Giada Prinsloo (Johannesburg)

Best midcourt player: Naledi Nakoa (Tshwane)

Best defender: Eloné Dippenaar (Cape Town)